Theories
According to Behaviorism, this is what language learning is the result of.
habit formation through stimulus–response–reinforcement
According to Krashen’s Input Hypothesis, learners acquire language from input that is slightly above their current level, often called this.
I+1 / comprehensible input
The Critical Period Hypothesis is mainly concerned with this factor.
Age of acquisition
Focus on Form means that grammar is taught in this context.
Meaningful communication?
Younger learners usually have an advantage in acquiring this aspect of language.
Pronunciation / Phonology
According to Chomsky, humans are born with this innate capacity for language.
Universal Grammar / a Language Acquisition Device
This researcher proposed the Output Hypothesis.
Merrill Swain
Motivation can be divided into these two main types.
Integrative and instrumental
When a teacher repeats a learner’s error using the correct form, this type of feedback is given.
Adults often progress faster than children in the early stages of learning in this context.
Classroom / instructed learning
This theory emphasizes the role of negotiation of meaning in communication.
Interactionist Theory
This hypothesis by Schmidt states that learners must consciously register language features for them to be acquired.
Noticing Hypothesis
Language learning aptitude includes memory and this ability to analyze language.
Analytic ability / phonemic coding ability
In SLA research, teachers who integrate grammar explanations into communicative activities are said to be balancing this long-standing instructional dichotomy.
Focus on Form vs. Focus on Meaning
Pragmatic competence refers to knowing how to use language appropriately in these contexts
Social and cultural contexts
In Sociocultural theory, this is what ZPD stands for.
Zone of Proximal Development
This hypothesis by Long highlights the importance of negotiation of meaning during communication.
Interaction Hypothesis
Anxiety, self-confidence, and identity are examples of these factors in SLA.
Affective factors
A learner says, “She don’t like pizza”. The teacher asks, “She … like pizza?” encouraging the learner to fill in the blank correctly. This type of learner-centered feedback is called what?
Elicitation / prompting
Learning a language in an immersion environment is an example of this type of context.
Naturalistic context
This theory argues that language learning happens through social interaction mediated by cultural tools.
Sociocultural Theory
Krashen’s Input Hypothesis has been criticized for underestimating the roles of these two processes in transforming input into acquisition.
Output and noticing/conscious learning
This individual difference is often stable and biologically influenced, but still shaped by experience.
Aptitude
A teacher notices persistent errors in a low-salience grammatical feature. According to SLA research, combining explicit instruction, meaning-focused practice, and corrective prompts would exemplify this type of approach.
Focus on Form
This factor helps explain why some immigrant children maintain strong L1 identities while acquiring an L2.
Sociocultural / identity factors